Share this page:

Interior Painting: The Ceiling

Are you planning to paint a room in your home? Do not forget about the ceiling. The ceiling is one of the most overlooked spaces in the room for painting, but it can be one of the best spaces to paint. It used to be that ceilings were nothing but white. That is no longer necessarily the best option. You can use color placed here to add visual appeal to a room. It can also help you to make the space larger and more inviting. As you consider all of the options you have for updating this space, remember that the ceiling can be an integral part but only if you do the painting here, properly.

Color Options

The first thing to consider is the color of the ceiling. White is traditional but by far not the only option. If you want the space to feel more open and inviting, use lighter colors on the ceiling. Often choosing a shade that is one or two lighter than what you are painting on the walls is ideal, sometimes even more of a difference is preferable. This keeps the space looking inviting and even larger.

On the other hand, you can paint the ceiling of any room a darker color. Doing so will help to make a big room more cozy. If you have high ceilings that do not appeal to you, select a paint shade that is just one shade lighter or even one shade darker than what you are painting on the walls. This will create a statement in the room. Dark colors on the ceiling do bring it in and make the room look smaller, though.

Painting Tips

How do you paint the ceiling? Here are some tips to help you to accomplish this part of the project easily.

Consider investing in ceiling paint. Some manufacturers have produced a paint that goes on pink in color but over a few hours changes to white. The benefit to using this product is that you can definitely see where you have painted, and where you need to fill in. This is recommended most for non-professionals to help with ceiling painting.

Be sure to protect anything on the walls when painting the ceiling. Paint will splatter just about everywhere!

Do remove any and all fixtures before painting. First you do not want to get them full of paint splatter and second, you want to be sure that the ceiling under them is also painted.

Painting the ceiling in any space is a good idea. Choose a flat or eggshell type of paint for the finish since you likely do not want the ceiling to have a glossy finish.

Also, remember that the best ceiling painters are still going to have some paint on them at the end of the project :)